Q: My husband will be retiring from the federal government in about 21 months and has been told that cannot elect the monthly survivor annuity (he is under CSRS) if his spouse is a federal employee. Is this true? He was told that this is “double-dipping.” A: What he was told isn’t true. Unless there is a court order assigning the survivor annuity to a former spouse, he is free to elect a survivor annuity for his current spouse, regardless of whether she works for the federal government, the private sector, or not at all.
Q: I worked for the Postal Service from January 1984 to September 1996 and was involuntarily separated after 12 years. Am I still eligible for a FERS annuity — and if so, when can I begin collecting and who do I contact to begin this process? A: If you left your retirement contributions in the retirement fund, you would be eligible for a deferred annuity at age 62. Two months before you reach that age, you’d need to complete a copy of Standard Form 3107, Application for Immediate Retirement, available for download at http://opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf3107.pdf, and send it to OPM.
Q: For years I have seen $0 applied in the ‘earnings’ column on my annual Social Security statement because I am a CSRS employee. CSRS wages are not considered as ‘earnings’ under Social Security and do not earn any Social Security benefit. However, I did worked a number of year in the private sector before I began my civil service employment, so I am now eligible for a small Social Security benefit based on that record alone. Since I am 62, I would like to begin to get that reduced Social Security benefit check, even though I still working as…
Q: My husband recently died, and we were devastated that our grandson, who is disabled, and has lived with us as a son since birth was denied a survivor’s annuity. We have one item that I thought might prove that he was really our de facto son. Our daughter, his mother, years ago signed a paper that resigned all her parental rights in favor of me and my husband. There is no father recognized on the birth certificate. Is this worth appealing with this paperwork? I don’t want to waste my time, but he really was our son in every…
Q. I am a retired Federal LEO on FERS. I was wondering if you know or can find out what the raise in premiums, if any, will be for Federal Blue Cross Blue Shield in 2011? A.Information on FEHB rates for 2011 hasn’t been released yet. When they are, you’ll find them prominently displayed in the Federal Times.
Q. My mom is 55 and has been receiving Social Security for over 30 years. She and my dad were married for over 10 years. My dad recently passed away at age 70 after having a stroke and retiring five years ago. The only income he received was from Social Security. Is my mom eligible to receive survivors benefits and also keep her benefits or would she have to pick one or the other? A. As a rule, she would receive the larger of the two benefits. However, the rules are complicated, so she should talk to a representative in…
Q. For most employees, the FERS Annuity Supplement is not actually payable in the year after they retire. If you retire at the end of a year from a full-time position, your earnings for that year will mostly likely fail the earnings test so the annuity supplement is reduced to zero. So at best, you have to wait at least one year after retirement to get the supplement. Is this true? It doesn’t seem fair to me, but I have a few years in which I can prepare for that one-year wait if it is true. Any earnings you have…
Q. I retired on disability retirement 10 months before the age of 55 with 32 years of service. I was able to go back to work after a little over a year. I am restricted to 80 percent of my salary. My question is will this restriction be for the rest of my working life? A. OPM will no longer ask you to report your earnings after you reach age 60.
Q. If I retire prior to the end of the leave year, say March 20, 2011, will I get paid annual leave for the entire leave year or just the three months that I am currently in service? A. You will only be paid for the annual leave that you have earned and still have to your credit on the day you retire.
Q. I will be retiring from a federal law enforcement position at the end of August 2010 with 25 years of service at age 53. I was born in 1957. I was eligible to retire at age 50. When am I subject to the earnings test for my annuity supplement? Is it age 56 since I was born in 1957? A. The Social Security earnings limit applies only to earnings from wages and self employment, not from other sources of income.